Quote:
Originally posted by sebastian_dangerfield
(a) What fields can we go into which will provide us with pay comparable to law...
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Answer: Non law-related fields without serious luck and/or connections (i.e., for the average person)? None.
You want to have it all (no problem; I do too). You want a $150K salary for 5 years of experience and prospects of $250K+/yr after 10ish years and more beyond that. But, don't want the billing, the hours, the stress, the firm politics, pressures to develop business, etc. Just want the money, in a non-legal career, wihtout at the lawfirm pitfalls. Here are the options to bigfirm practice and pitfalls as I see them:
(1) work for the govt in a legal capacity. States pay okay; feds pay better; benefits are good. Salary can be near $100k soon, but pretty much levels off and stays stagnant. Very difficlut to make more than $120K working for the gov't.
(2) non-firm jobs in the private sector. In-house, teach, non-profit, westlaw rep, headhunter, etc. Most don't pay too well; some very boring. In-house comparable to lawfirms in the initial years; however, unless you become the general counsel, salary is stagnant after $150k-ish.
(3) move to a smaller firm. Less money, but presumably less stress, less hours, etc.
(4) Lottery, sugar mama/daddy, crime, prostitution, porn.
(5) Bite the bullet and acknowledge that going to law school was a mistake for you. Find a professional field of interest where you can make good money (business, medicine, real estate, sales, and the like). Then, either get an advanced degree to assist with that field or enter it at the ground level and work your way up to successes and potential riches. This is what non-lawyers do. No reason that lawyers, entering a non-legal field, don't have to do it also.
Options 1-3 are all good, legitimate ways to get away from the bigfirm life. Must accept the tradeoff however that the money will not be as good. No. 4 could be fun and have perks; could also lead to time the big house. No. 5 is the only real option, for most people, to make biglaw cash in a non-legal profession. Takes lots of sacrafice, time and work.
That's just the way it is. We don't like to admit it; that's why we keep asking the question.
